8 Marzo
For quite some time, the new feminist movement has shaped a narrative of gender-based violence as a way to drive its oppression narrative. As a result of this discourse, different governments have taken task to pass legislation that would essentially drive down this issue. In 2004, the Spanish government took notice and passed the Ley Integral, where it gave a strict definition for gender-based violence, including domestic violence, threats, and much more. When looking at the latest numbers released in 2018 by the Spanish state, one can say this law is not effective in dealing with the violence and actually paints a different picture than the one being pushed.
When looking at the numbers, a certain trend can be seen. For instance, in 2017, 51 women had died at the hands of this violence. When breaking them down, death came from domestic violence. 31 deaths were at the hands of couples, whereas 20 had died at the hands of an ex-partner or in the process of divorce. Even more revealing about the failures of this law, 12 died after denouncing the threat and 6 died even though they had security measures. Out of 51, 18 deaths can be attributed to security failures[1].
Regarding the age group of the victims, the bulk is aged between 21 and 50 years, with the group 31 to 40 years old representing the majority of the victims with 16 deaths, then the group 41 to 50 with 12 deaths, and 21 to 30 with 10 deaths. This age breakdown seems to confirm the underlying trends of domestic violence being the major driver to this gender violence rhetoric.
The recorded history, dating from 1999 to 2017, shows that Spain has a history with gender-based violence. When looking at the historical trends, one can bet on a brighter future to the eradication of this issue. After each peak, which happened in 2000, 2003, 2008, and 2010, massive declines have countered-balanced immediately. For instance, in 2000 the peak was at 63 deaths. The year right after, the numbers went down to 50. It picked up the following years, reaching another peak in 2004 with 72 deaths. Once again, immediately, a sharp drop occurred, bringing the number down to 57 deaths. Just as strong as the decline was, the peak that followed was just as strong, with 69 deaths. There was a slow growth in the following two years, reaching 76 in 2008. The same cycle kept going, strong decline the following year (56) and then another peak (73). After that peak, the decline hit hard and the growth was never as strong and eventually reached an all-time low in 2016 with 49 deaths. 2017 confirmed that trend with only an increase of 2 deaths. Surely, one death is already one too many yet the trends could show a certain stability in the numbers to come.
The real problem, as demonstrated by the numbers cited previously, is not a gender war, as suggested, but rather a domestic violence issue. If the Spanish feminist movement really wanted to rally behind a cause which could actually bring support is the cause for stronger measures of security and applying the law, rather than calling for a sense of justice rooted in hate.
Appendix:
[1]"Instituto Nacional De Estadística.," Instituto Nacional De Estadistica. (Spanish Statistical Office), , accessed March 1, 2019, http://www.ine.es/ss/Satellite?L=es_ES&c=INESeccion_C&cid=1259926144037&p=1254735110672&pagename=ProductosYServicios/PYSLayout.
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